Fletcher Admits - Fall 2015!

[Wiking13]

Thought I'd instantly be rejected considering I have no real work experience, poor quant GREs and little IR experience even in my internships yet I still managed to be put on the waitlist and now I'm in an awkward position. I was also accepted to LSE, which I still think I'd prefer over Fletcher, but it's always nice to have options and I'd like to see if I get off the waitlist. However, I need to get started on applying for my student visa and Fletcher doesn't let us know until May. I wonder if I should try calling Fletcher admissions to see if there are any avenues to ameloriate this situation, ugh.

[PolicyGrad92]

Completely agree with this. Be up front, frank and polite with them. That's what I'm going to do. "I love your school and I'm grateful for the 30% scholarship, but I am still short by $_____. I have been offered a 50% scholarship by XYZ university. If you would be willing to exceed that and narrow the gap between my finances and the cost of attendance, I would be much more likely accept your offer" - or something along those lines. 

 

Totally agree here - I really want to go to Fletcher. and I can't afford it with my current offer. But I am still queasy about talking about other funding from other universities in a conversation.. it's an internal problem I guess. I've never heard of such conversations in my country so I guess that's why I'm feeling odd about this. I'll figure it out. 

[chelaylay]

Completely agree with this. Be up front, frank and polite with them. That's what I'm going to do. "I love your school and I'm grateful for the 30% scholarship, but I am still short by $_____. I have been offered a 50% scholarship by XYZ university. If you would be willing to exceed that and narrow the gap between my finances and the cost of attendance, I would be much more likely accept your offer" - or something along those lines. 

What about "I love your school, but you won't let me defer and put this offer on hold and save more money, so please help more"? Since Fletcher's aid is based on merit and need - it's not likely you can move yourself up the ladder in merit once you're admitted. But can you successfully advocate for more based on need? 

 

I feel like I am back at this place where I know I want the degree to be able to be a better development worker but I don't think I need it to advance in this field - in fact I might even take a salary cut post graduation looking at those stats. Cold hard reality is not just comparing the offers from schools to one another but the potential money I'd be making if I stayed in the workforce.   It's totally killing the happy buzz I should be getting from admissions! 

[WinterSolstice]

What about "I love your school, but you won't let me defer and put this offer on hold and save more money, so please help more"? Since Fletcher's aid is based on merit and need - it's not likely you can move yourself up the ladder in merit once you're admitted. But can you successfully advocate for more based on need? 

 

I feel like I am back at this place where I know I want the degree to be able to be a better development worker but I don't think I need it to advance in this field - in fact I might even take a salary cut post graduation looking at those stats. Cold hard reality is not just comparing the offers from schools to one another but the potential money I'd be making if I stayed in the workforce.   It's totally killing the happy buzz I should be getting from admissions! 

 

I probably wouldn't go about it from the route of bringing up a deferral (for most schools, financial reasons aren't sufficient to receive a deferral anyway, unless it's tied to a medical or family emergency). But it doesn't hurt to reach out and say that while you're very excited to attend Fletcher, that the aid you received is short of what you would need to feasibly attend and ask politely if there's a way to have your aid package re-evaluated. If you ask politely and respectfully, the worst that can happen is that they say no. It's probably more difficult to get more money without another school's offer to use as leverage, but it doesn't hurt to try. 

[manutdftw]

Congrats y'all for getting accepted!! If you don't mind, could you please share what your profile is like? Please feel free to use the following template and add anything you think would be helpful. Thanks again and congratulations!! 

 

GRE: 
GPA:
Work Experience: 

[IR2015]

I probably wouldn't go about it from the route of bringing up a deferral (for most schools, financial reasons aren't sufficient to receive a deferral anyway, unless it's tied to a medical or family emergency). But it doesn't hurt to reach out and say that while you're very excited to attend Fletcher, that the aid you received is short of what you would need to feasibly attend and ask politely if there's a way to have your aid package re-evaluated. If you ask politely and respectfully, the worst that can happen is that they say no. It's probably more difficult to get more money without another school's offer to use as leverage, but it doesn't hurt to try. 

 

This is all interesting insight... I got significantly more aid at one school, but would love to see if some of the other schools could come close to matching it so I can make the decision more off of which school and program is best for me long term rather than which is most financially feasible in the short term. Do you just recommend emailing the admissions group with this sort of a request, or is there a more personal way to do it?

[WinterSolstice]

This is all interesting insight... I got significantly more aid at one school, but would love to see if some of the other schools could come close to matching it so I can make the decision more off of which school and program is best for me long term rather than which is most financially feasible in the short term. Do you just recommend emailing the admissions group with this sort of a request, or is there a more personal way to do it?

 

I'd probably contact the Financial Aid office and explain the situation and see what they say. 

[treegirl109]

I see a lot of you were also accepted to both SAIS and Fletcher. I'm torn between the two. 

 

I feel like SAIS has a better reputation. I also like SAIS's focus on quant (even though I'm a little scared at the same time). I like the idea of living in D.C. where I can easily get an internship during the school year (already think I have a phenomenal part time internship in the bag, in fact). What I don't like is the size of the program (too large), but maybe I don't have a firm grasp on what the different cohort sizes are actually like. Also, I'm worried about the language requirement. You must have proficiency in a foreign language taught at SAIS. Although I have previously studied at French, I'm worried about getting my level up to a proficient standard. 

 

I absolutely love Boston (even though there seems to be less networking/internship opportunities in IR in the area). I also like that you can cross-register for classes at Harvard and MIT. I like that the program size is slightly smaller, and the alum network seems to be extremely tight-knit. Also, the language proficiency can be in any language (and I feel like I can take a proficiency exam in Turkish). I don't like that many outside of the IR field are not familiar with Tufts. Furthermore, Tufts seems to be overshadowed by Harvard and MIT being in the same area. 

[ZebraFinch]

I talked to people at SAIS a lot And The dufferences i can ser are that the program gives hoy skills very useful in the private sector as well and it's more practical (rather than focusing on theory) than MALD seems to be. But they're both excellent.

Sorry for typos, typed on the phone.

[Policykid]

As a lawyer looking to find my feet in international development consulting, I find the MALD program to be the most helpful program. In terms of visibility, I would agree that Fletcher (read Tufts) does not appear to be as awe-evocking  a brand as a Harvard or Georgetown or Princeton, particularly outside of the IR fraternity. That being said, if I am to enrol in an International Relations/Affairs program, I would be more interested to know what folks from the IR field think about the program instead of the world at large. These are just my opinion. 

[ZebraFinch]

As a lawyer looking to find my feet in international development consulting, I find the MALD program to be the most helpful program. In terms of visibility, I would agree that Fletcher (read Tufts) does not appear to be as awe-evocking a brand as a Harvard or Georgetown or Princeton, particularly outside of the IR fraternity. That being said, if I am to enrol in an International Relations/Affairs program, I would be more interested to know what folks from the IR field think about the program instead of the world at large. These are just my opinion.

I think thus is exactly it, do you want to be solely in IR? Fletcher's good, but if you're open to non-IR possibilities, maybe name recognition is more important.

[Bombaygunner]

What are people's thoughts on the importance of "brand-name" and "visibility" ?

 

Everyone I've spoken to who has heard of Tufts/Fletcher can't stop gushing about how great the school is. I live outside the US and it doesn't seem to be as well known as some of Boston's more brand-name schools. But almost everyone I've spoken to in America has only good things to say about it. 

 

Question for any US residents on here: Any idea what the perception of Tufts is within the United States? Other than Fletcher, is the school known for a specific area? ie. From what I gather, Johns Hopkins is known primarily for medicine and not IR, even though SAIS is one of the best programs out there.

[aishunbao]

What are people's thoughts on the importance of "brand-name" and "visibility" ?

 

Everyone I've spoken to who has heard of Tufts/Fletcher can't stop gushing about how great the school is. I live outside the US and it doesn't seem to be as well known as some of Boston's more brand-name schools. But almost everyone I've spoken to in America has only good things to say about it. 

 

Question for any US residents on here: Any idea what the perception of Tufts is within the United States? Other than Fletcher, is the school known for a specific area? ie. From what I gather, Johns Hopkins is known primarily for medicine and not IR, even though SAIS is one of the best programs out there.

 

I grew up in Boston (actually a city right next to Tufts) and I also was a Tufts undergrad. If you're in Boston, then you're almost in the among the echelons of Harvard and MIT. I've had a lot of people from Boston mistake Tufts for an Ivy League school. Despite being a college town though, it is really hard to find Tufts t-shirts and gear outside of the campus (unlike Harvard). Tufts is famous for its medical school and has a medical center (and subway stop) named after it near downtown which would explain its reputation in the city. Otherwise, it might be recognized for its engineering program or biomedical research.

 

Outside of Boston, Tufts is usually recognized in the northeastern states. Outside of those states, you might only get recognition among educated folks and employers in specialized fields. Tufts people are everywhere, hidden all over the place though. I love getting random shout-outs while wearing Tufts gear.

Edited March 16, 2015 by aishunbao

[Boats]

What are people's thoughts on the importance of "brand-name" and "visibility" ?

 

Everyone I've spoken to who has heard of Tufts/Fletcher can't stop gushing about how great the school is. I live outside the US and it doesn't seem to be as well known as some of Boston's more brand-name schools. But almost everyone I've spoken to in America has only good things to say about it. 

 

Question for any US residents on here: Any idea what the perception of Tufts is within the United States? Other than Fletcher, is the school known for a specific area? ie. From what I gather, Johns Hopkins is known primarily for medicine and not IR, even though SAIS is one of the best programs out there.

I have the similar concern. SAIS seems to one of the best programs for IR. But people seem to recognize Columbia more. Some of them even asked where is Tufts. But does that really make a difference? Or should be choose a college which is known better among all?

[Policykid]

To put in crude terms, for people outside US (particularly India), going to fletcher might deprive them of bragging rights in their community   .. but if you can look past that, it seems like a great place to be. Just to test this theory I had asked some of my non-engineering friends in India if they had heard about ETH Zurich. Well they did not. And believe me I am not exaggerating, a few of them hadnt heard of CalTech. Still great schools, perhaps the best??  So personally I am not as swayed by the brand visibility quotient as I was when drawing my list of schools to apply. 

 

What strikes me about Fletcher is that I am yet to come across a single person (read someone who could be useful for future career prospects) who  hasn't absolutely raved about the school. And I have spoken to more people who did not go to fletcher than those who did. I have a conviction, a strong one at that I might add, that in order for me to get a job, networking might be the single most important factor.. fletcher undisputedly ranks 1 in that department.  It is true that the halo of the fletcher extends mostly to only the IR world. That being said, the fletcher degree is highly valued by the employers and that its a definite stepping stone to a great career in IR. 

[PolicyGrad92]

What if you want to work in development in South Asia? Are you saying Fletcher has better networking opportunities than SIPA, and SAIS despite the schools being in New York and DC?

Can you explain this? I'm struggling to decide too. Except I'm leaning towards SIPA over Fletcher because it's a better fit for what I want to do.. I feel at the end of the day that's what matters? Funding being the overriding factor of course.

[Policykid]

On the issue of fit... yes without even the flimsiest of doubts.. 

 

Well I havent found the answer to be as white and black as one would like.. New York definitely has a much larger pool of professionals working in almost every field one can think of. This would mean that you get more meetings with these professionals than you would at say Boston. But then comes the question as to whether these meetings go beyond the usual lip service and actually result in something substantial. The thing about fletcher alumni is that they for some reason really stick their necks out for the students. Im sure the others do too, just that somehow it doesnt jump out as much as it does when one considers  the fletcher alumni. 

 

As for DC, considering I am non-citizen, I wonder how many jobs are there in DC for me, and whether the famed DC location would be of any advantage to me. This is the reason I didnt apply to G'town or SIAS despite the substantial literature on the internet compelling me to do so. 

 

to track alumnis, I generally go on linked in and do a hit and trial search.. Im afraid I dont have a more scientific method yet. You could probably look for development professionals in SE Asia and trace their grad-school heritage..

 

Good luck with the decisions

Edited March 17, 2015 by Policykid

[ir_gradstudent]

I got into D.C. schools, so I am really sad I may have to turn down Fletcher and a good funding package so I am available for internship and employment opportunities in D.C. For me, I think being located in D.C. will be really important. Fletcher has done the most outreach towards me out of all the schools I was accepted to, so they've risen up to my shortlist. But I really think the D.C. thing might be a clencher for me.

[PolicyGrad92]

I have no outreach from Fletcher. Too much outreach from SIPA, I'm confused!

[ZebraFinch]

I've found talking to anyone in admissions at Fletcher next to impossible.

[Policykid]

this thread has to be the most interesting one in the Government Affairs section   

[ZebraFinch]

 I've greatly enjoyed the HKS ones, just from David King's posts, even though I didn't even apply to HKS!

[Policykid]

looking at this thread no one can deny the diversity at the fletcher admissions office!! 

[chelaylay]

I'm torn on Fletcher. Their career services office strikes me as exceptional. They have a strong alumni network. But at the end of the day it's in Medford. 

 

I went to college in DC and I can say 100% that the reason I had a job after I graduated was simply by virtue of being there. Interviewers ate up the internship experience, having the degree was basically just checking the box. So I wonder if Fletcher's career services office has to be exceptional to overcome that disadvantage of having students in another place? 

 

I also am not sure how I feel about the culture. I like that it's so friendly and tight knit but on the other hand, it feels a little collegiate and less professional than other programs, not entirely in a good way. I'm not uprooting my life to spend 2 years in a flashback to undergrad, you know?

[SnakePliskin207]

I have been accepted into the Fletcher MALD program and will be coming up for the accepted students weekend.

 

While the Tufts name may not be as immediately recognizable in name recognition as Harvard (at least to the average Joe) I have heard nothing but good things about the program from those "in the know" within the IR community as well as previous academic instructors.   

 

Does anyone know the average size of the student body within the MALD program?  The Tufts website lists that class sizes are very small, which is very appealing to me.